What We Love About Big Cedar Lodge

The SPACES

The FACES

Hallie

Lauren

LukeTom

Kami

Maggie

Ellie

Nana and PapaKyler and Luke

Ana

Raelynn

Kelly and Luke

Nana and Maggie Pie

The Crew

Uncle Fred and Ana

Kami, Hallie, Ellie, Kyler and Luke


The HORSE RACES

The PLACES

Fishing at Devil's Pool

Walking the trails

Bent Hook Marina

The Swimmin' Hole

In the cabin

Brushey Creek

Table Rock Lake

Campfire Wagon Ride


The ACES

Luke has a marshmallow stash in his left hand.....Woops, Luke missed Uncle Scott... good thing he ducked!Got him!!!!Kami's tallest-in-the-world Lincoln Log tower.

Luke got some great presents for his birthday!


The CASESLuke put on his goggles on the way to Big Cedar

Maggie got scared by her daddy. (who was acting like a bear.)

Ellie bein' Ellie. (marshmallow mouth)

The EMBRACES
The WATER CHASESKiki and HeatherEllie and HallieLuke jumping for the ballHeather, Raelynn and Hallie on the canoeAna, Raelynn, Hallie and Kami jumping in the pool

Raelynn on the water slide

Kiki and Maggie

GOD's GRACESIf you got this far, you are indeed amazing. I know I included a huge amount of pictures in this post. But I took 745 pictures and this was the best I could do to whittle them down. They all capture such great moments! I may have beat Katie's record of most pictures in a post, but I must give her credit... she's the one who made me step out of the box and go for it. I'm glad I did. Precious and few are the days we spend with family at Big Cedar Lodge.

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Do You See What I See?

Energy Unending-
Questions Demanding-
Attitude Unfurling-

But Do You See What I See?

Silliness,
A Chilliness
And Yes Relentlessness,

But Do You See What I See?

Self-contained,
No Interest Feigned,
Needs Help, It's Claimed

But Do You See What I See?

Magnetic
Kinetic
Rugged
Athletic
Gregarious
Hilarious
Strong
and Mysterious
Child of God
No facade
Tenacious
and Broad
Adored
and Forgiven
Valued
and Driven
Filled with Faith
Runs the Race
Seek His Face
Find His Place

My Son.

This is What I See.

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The Details

What is so enjoyable, so satisfying....

.... about getting together for events such as Mom's Birthday?

We do the same activities practically every year.

Same rituals, same places, same people.

So how in the world do we squeeze so much fun out of it?

For me, it's all in the details.

Detail #1 - It was a beautiful evening. No rain! And lots of smiles.

Detail #2 - Mom is wearing her earrings that I bought for her birthday! I wasn't sure she'd like them - she can be PICKY!!! - but I think I scored!
Detail #3 - Ellie is always the first to hug her grandparents. She breaks into a run when she sees them and gives them big hugs, as though she hasn't seen them in two years. Sweet.Detail #4 - Luke, the only grandson, is the first to be ornery. And then he stays that way the entire night. He just can't help it. He adds some spice, that's for sure.

Detail #5 - Is it weird that I love the detail of sweat? Luke's hair is wet with sweat and in a few short years, when he is a stinky teen, I'm sure the sweat will be gross. But for now, I'm loving the sweat.Detail #6 - Luke always takes these occasions to give Lauren a huge kiss, apparently while putting her in a stranglehold too. She doesn't look too mad about it this time.Detail #7 - Papa always calls for a group picture. No matter where we are or how many people are there or how many people in the group, we take the dreaded group picture. It usually seems stressful at the time, but when I load my pictures, I'm always glad we did it. Detail #8 - Kami is always the first to be active. Here she is playing with Lauren on Lauren's new trampoline!!!Detail #9 - Kami being active again, this time playing basketball with cousin Hallie.

Detail #10 - Tom watching in the background, just being Tom. Quiet. Observant. Tom. Who I love.
Detail #11 - Kim's kids can't help but look beautiful at all times of the day. Here is Lauren in her adorable outfit. She's a cutie!
Detail #12 - Maggie Rae blowing bubbles. In her own little world. But too funny and talking up a storm. Stunning. Detail #13 - Scott loves his kids. It shows in his eyes.Detail #14 - He loves mine too. He is always so good to them.

Detail #15 - Ellie is wearing her "This is my lucky shirt" shirt. You can see it too well in the picture, but trust me, it's sooooo Ellie. Detail #16 - Look at their faces as they sing happy birthday to Nana! What a blessing!

Detail #17 - Nana turned 70 with grace and beauty and much love for her family.

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Great Eights

I was tagged by my darling friend Katie! ....oh... nearly a MONTH ago...

Let's just say I've been a little busy.
I'm sure you have been too.

But would you like to read about my Great Eights?

8 things I am looking forward to:

*Going to Big Cedar Lodge in Branson, Missouri with extended family in a few short weeks!!!

*Going to KANAKUK Family Kamp this summer!!! Hoo-ahh!!! You have no idea how totally excited I am about this.

*Enjoying summertime! Staying up late and sleeping in!! Hanging out with the kiddos and our friends and breathing in every minute.

*My granny's 98th Birthday late this summer. Remember how fun her 97th birthday was?

*Relaxing with Tom in front of a movie rental after the kids go to bed. Ahhhhhh.

*Hanging out with my sister and her family at the club.

*Kami's 11th birthday party - it's going to be the same place as last year - that's how much fun it was!!!!

*Growing spiritually at Asbury's Summer Bible Study - Beth Moore's Esther! Totally looking forward to it.


8 things I did yesterday:

1) We went to church at FBC! The praise and worship ROCKED!!!! Even Tom was tapping his toe a little bit. Nate Nauman spoke on Malachi. Which, yes, does apply to our lives today. Very good stuff.

2) We had lunch with the Mackeys! We don't get to do this to often, but it was such a beautiful and pleasant day and everyone was in a good mood!

3) I helped Ellie with her project for school.... it is going to be SO awesome. I will be posting about it very soon!

4) I called Kami on her cell phone every 10 minutes while she walked down to the park with a friend. She's getting big enough to do stuff like that, but momma isn't gonna stop checking on her. Thank God for cellphones.

5) I gave Tom a hug when he brought dinner home instead of having me cook. I like to cook! I do! But it was nice to have the night off!

6) I cleaned out old files on my computer and defragmented. Took forever, but totally worth it. I feel like I have a much happier (and faster) computer.

7) I watched the kids play outside for hours... playing Nerf guns and spy with our next door neighbors.

8) I watched the season finale of Survivor!!!! Tom and I have watched all 18 seasons of it. I know - we're nuts, but we love it and love this season's winner: country boy J.T.!!!!!

8 things I wish I could do:

1) I wish I could approach situations with more logic than emotions. It's usally the other way around.

2) I wish I could crave healthy food rather than just salty and sweet (though for lunch I did have a kickin' Jamba Juice - Mega Mango - YUM! and oatmeal for breakfast with raspberries. But I won't tell you what I just had for snack.)

3) I wish my eyes could be completely opened to the fleeting quality of life on this earth... I KNOW that I am a citizen of heaven, but it's so easy to get comformed to the patterns of life here on this earth. I want to think on things ABOVE!!! Not on earthly things!!!!

4) I wish I could believe with abandon in the plan God has for me and my family. I do believe, (He is in control - I know it!) but some times I think my belief is the size of a mustard seed.

5) I wish I could care less about the outcome of our basketball games. (See number 1.)

6) Dance - I seriously wish I could bust a move. Like Michael Jackson. Or Beyonce.

7) Sing - not just sing, but SING!! I love music, especially praise and worship music, but honey, I cannot carry a tune to save my life.

8) Take my family on a trip to Europe. I think that would be amazing - loved it when I went there after college - would love to experience it with family.

8 shows I watch:

1) Survivor!

2) The weather (on channel 6)

3) NCAA basketball

4) NBA basketball

5) Once in a blue moon I will watch Oprah.

6) that's pretty much IT!!!!


8 bloggers I'm tagging:

1) KimNOW
2) IA Pilot's Wife
3) My Own Crafty Wonderland
4) The Herrold Collection
5) Insert Grace Here
6) Treasured Chapters
7) Dawn's Diversons
8) Roxanne Kristina
9) A Small Peek into My World
10) A Day in the Life
11) The Sweet Life
12) 4 Lettre Words

Woops!!!! Sorry, I went over!!! I could keep on going so if you are not listed here and want to participate, please do.

Anyway, here are the directions:
Here's how to do this 8 THINGS thing:- Mention the person that tagged you.- Complete the lists of 8's.- Tag 8 of your wonderful bloggy friends.- Go tell them you tagged them!

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The Box: Out or In?

Are you an "in the box" kind of person or do you think "out of the box?"

I am intrigued by out of the box thinking, mostly because I am a out of the box wannabe.

I am definitely NOT an in the box kind of girl - limitations and boundaries make me feel claustrophobic. However, I am sure that I am hindered by everyday, ordinary routines and structures, which make it easy to stay in the box, never venturing out into that realm of the exciting and creative unknown.

Lately, I read Randy Pausch's book The Last Lecture. Have you seen his last lecture? As he was suffering with terminal cancer, this inspirational and crazy intelligent man, gave his last lecture to his students at Carnegie Mellon. You can see it here.

I brought plenty away from his book, which is based on the lecture.

One thing that I'm trying to apply a little more liberally in my life and especially with my children is out of the box thinking.

Routine is great. Kids thrive on it.

But what is wrong with once in awhile...
Doing things differently.
Trying something new.
Being a nonconformist.
Encouraging innovation to solve problems.
Stepping out of that comfort zone.
Thinking out of the box.
Maybe making mistakes,
but then learning from them.
Thinking big!
Challenging the norm.
Creating new pathways.
Marching forth with creativity.

In my mind, these are all qualities of leaders. I know there's the big debate about leaders: are they born or made? But if there is any little way I can help my kids learn to think out of the box, well, I'm going to try it.

The kids wanted to paint the fort. With permanent paint. Ok... I must mentally let go of my
home looking perfect for the sake of creativity and plain old childhood memories.

(One chapter of The Last Lecture describes when Randy's parents allowed him to paint on the walls of his bedroom - pictures of whatever he wanted - in his case that was algebraic equations, but anyway, it inspired me!)

Go for it! I told the kids. Luke says he wants to take a bath in the sink. Our kitchen sink. Well, it's big enough. Why not? Sorry you germophobes out there. The thought of a boy's bottom in the kitchen sink probably makes you want to scream, but hey, I'm thinking out of the box here! Give me a break. And he's going to outgrow that sink real soon. There won't be baths in the sink much longer. Better be out of the box while we still can.So, tell me! Do you think in the box or out of the box? I'd love to hear some of your best out of the box mom moves. I'm still developing mine... so maybe I can think OUT OF THE BOX and use your moves on my own family!

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I Never Went On A Field Trip Like This....

I think Biz Town is pretty much a kid's dream....
It is an all-day get away hosted by Junior Achievement.

Kids get to run BizTown the town for the day.

When I say BizTown, that includes business establishments such as....

WalmartCoxCancer Treatment Center of AmericaTulsa Tech....
plus Arby's, Reasors, the Schusterman Center,
Bank of Oklahoma, the Tulsa World and several others.

Before the field trip, the kids interview for jobs and prepare for them too.

Additionally, they get checkbooks and learn how to use them.
They find out how much their salary is, depending on the job they landed.

They even elect a mayor...
who happened to be Kami!!!!!
(proud mom alert - pics coming)Here she is giving her town square speech
(in front of over 100 kids! she did GREAT!!!)Here she at her desk signing checks and making powerful decisions.Here is the mayor's mom. Isn't she glowing????There were mail carriers, Construction workers (from Flintco)

City workersand a dee jay! (Kami's friend Jenna)

The kids actually got paid (in Biz Town money)
and had to learn how to make desposits and withdraw BizTown cash.
Each business had a CEO and CFO who had to manage bills and payroll and employees.
Then on their lunch break, they got to spend that money on different BizTown products. Here are Kami and Lizzie on their lunchbreak.

No, I didn't ever go on a field trip like this one,
but I'm sure glad my kids get to!!!

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